Means for peedino fiber to a pile fabric knitting machine



0. T. RADTKE May 3, 1966 MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A FILE FABRICKNITTING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed Dec. 10 1962 INVENTOR.OTTo T. PADTKE ATTOQN E Y5 T. HADTKE Re. 26,015

MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A PILE FABRIC KNITTING MACHINE May 3, 1966 5Sheets-Sheet 2 Dviginal Filed Dec. 10, 1962 May 3, 1966 Q. T DTKE Re.

MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A FILE FABRIC KNITTING MACHINE Original FiledDec. 10, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet P i n U I f 2 l m/ fi 1 INVENTOR. Q OTTO TRADTKE M mm- ATTORNEYS May 3, 1966 o. T. RADTKE Re. 26,015

MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A FILE FABRIC KNITTING MACHINE Original FiledDec. 10, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 4.

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NVENTOR. Orro T ADTKE ATTORNEYS May 3, 1966 o. T. RADTKE 26,015

MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A PILE FABRIC KNITTING MACHINE Original FiledDec. 10, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. Orro T. RADTKE A T TORN E Y5United States Patent 26,015 MEANS FOR FEEDING FIBER TO A PILE FABRICKNITTING MACHINE Otto T. Radtke, Walworth, Wis., assignor to GlenoitMills, Inc., Tarboro, N .C., a corporation of Delaware Original No.3,188,834, dated June 15, 1965, Ser. No. 247,430, Dec. 10, 1962.Application for reissue Oct. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 507,263

Claims. (Cl. 66-9) Matter enclosed in heavy brackets appears in theoriginal patent but forms no part of this reissue specification; matterprinted in italics indicates the additions made by reissue.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my prior copendingapplication Serial No. 846,506, filed October 14, 1959, and nowabandoned.

This invention relates to a pile fabric knitting machine and moreparticularly to a method and means for feeding fibers from roving orsliver to the needles of a pile fabric knitting machine.

Pile fabric knitting machines of the type comprising a circular knittingmachine for knitting the back or base fabric and a carding head forcarding and feeding the pile forming fibrous material to the needles ofthe machine are Well known. See, for example, Brandt 2,710,- 525 andMoore 1,848,370.

The present invention comprises a fiber feeding apparatus for pilefabric knitting machines designed to produce both a carding action and adrafting action on the fibers being fed and is designated herein broadlyas a carding unit.

It is an object of this invention to produce a new and improvedapparatus for feeding pile forming fibrous material to the needles of apile fabric knitting machine which is more efficient, economical andpractical than carding heads known heretofore.

This invention contemplates a carding unit which will feed, parallelizeand impart a uniform distribution to smaller denier fibers than knowncarding heads and which will handle coarse and fine denier blends offibers without separation of the coarse and fine fibers.

It is also an object of this invention to produce a carding unit whichwill produce more uniform distribution of fibers on the needles of theknitting machine and in the pile fabric produced thereby.

This invention also contemplates a carding unit which is simpler andwhich requires less service than carding heads heretofore known.

This invention also contemplates a carding unit capable of handlingheavier roving or sliver and longer fiber than is practicable withcarding heads known heretofore.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section through the carding unit of this inventionand the knitting machine showing portions of the needle cylinder,needles, and the frame of the knitting machine.

FIG. 2 is a section along the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the carding unit showing in particular thedriving gearing. This view is taken from the left hand side of the unit.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view of the unit taken on the right hand sideand showing the support for part of the driving gearing which is locatedon the right hand side of the unit.

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary view of the carding unit taken along the line5-5 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 6 is a detail section of one of the spring mechanisms for adjustingthe pressure of the upper corrugated roller against the lower corrugatedroller.

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary side elevation of the carding unit showing thethree pairs of corrugating rollers, the wire brush roller and thetransfer roll.

FIG. 8 illustrates the roving or sliver before it is carded by the unitof this invention.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary elevation of the roving after it has passedthrough the carding unit of this invention.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of the gear box with the cover removed.

FIGS. 11 and 12 are front and side views respectively of the reductiongear drive unit for the corrugating rollers.

FIG. 13 is a top plan view of the carding unit.

Referring to FIG. 1, the so-called head ring, which is an annular ringforming part of the frame of the circular knitting machine, isdesignated 10. This ring is supported above the floor by other parts ofthe frame (not shown) and in turn supports the gear ring 11 which isrotatable in a manner well known in the art. The teeth of the gear ringare designated 12. The needle cylinder is designated 13 and is supportedon the gear ring 11 to which it is secured by screws (not shown). Thecylinder carries a circular row of latch needles 14, only a few of whichare shown. Since circular knitting machines for knitting pile fabric arewell known, it is believed that no further description or showing of theknitting machine is necessary.

The carding unit of this invention consists of a frame generallydesignated 15 which comprises a base 16, an upstanding left side 17 andan upstanding right side 18. The base 16 is bolted or otherwise securedto the frame of the knitting machine. The main cylinder or transfer roll19 of the carding unit is fixed upon shaft 20 which is journalled in theside walls 17 and 18 of frame 15.

Cylinder 19 is covered with a conventional card clothing generallydesignated 21 which comprises the usual cotton backing and felt body 22and wire teeth 23. A conventional doifer roll 24 is fixed upon shaft 25which is also journalled at each end in the side walls of the frame 15.The doffer roll also is covered with a conventional card clothinggenerally designated 26 and comprising the usual cotton backing and feltbody 27 and wire teeth 28. The teeth 23 of the transfer roll 19intermcsh with teeth 28 of the doiier roll 24.

The drawing or drafting section of the carding unit comprises threepairs or sets of corrugated or fluted rollers 40, 41 and 4 2. Thecorrugated roller portion of the unit is supported upon a bracket 29which is bolted to base 16. Rollers 42 are mounted in a U-framc 30.Rollers 41 are mounted in a U-frame 31. Rollers 40 are mounted in aU-frame 32. Frames 31 and 32 each comprise a base 33 and right and lefthand side walls 34 and 35. Frames 31, 32 are adjust-ably mounted uponplate 36. Frame 30 is preferably fixed on plate 36. Frames 31 and 32 aresecured in position by bolts 38 which project through slots 37 in plate36 and screw into bases 33. When bolts 38 are turned up against plate36, frames 31, 32 are locked in position on plate 36. The frames 313, 31and 32 each support a pair of corrugating rollers. Plate 36 isadjustable upon bracket 29 toward and away from the cylinder 19 and islocked in position by bolts 39 which project through parallel slots inbracket 29. Bolts 39 screw into plate 36 and when turned tightly upagainst bracket 29, lock plate 36 in adjusted position upon bracket 29.

Since each pair of corrugated rollers 40, 41 and 22 is rotatablysupported in its respective support in the same manner, the descriptionof the mounting of one pair will apply equally well to the rotatablesupporting of the other pairs. Referring to FIG. 7, the first pair ofcorrugated rollers is designated 40, the second pair 41 and the thirdpair 42. Each pair comprises a lower roller and an upper roller. Thelower and upper rollers of pair 40 are designated 43 and 44,respectively. The lower and upper rollers of pair 41 are designated 45and 46, respectively. and the lower and upper rollers of pair 42 aredesignated 47 and 48, respectively. Rollers 43, 44, 45 and 46 aresubstantially identical and can be used interchangeably. Rollers 47 and48 are substantial copies of rollers 43 to 46 except that they have asomewhat smaller outside diameter, for example, rollers 43 to 46 mayeach have an outside diameter of one and a quarter inches whereasrollers 47 and 48 may each have an outside diameter of one inch.

Corrugated rollers 43 and 44 are fixed upon shafts 49 and 50, rollers 45and 46 are fixed upon shafts 51 and 52, and rollers 47 and 48 are fixedupon shafts 53 and 54, respectively. Shafts 49 and 50 are journalled ateach end in the side walls 34, 35 of their support frame 32. Shafts 51and 52 are journalled at each end in the side walls 34, 35 of supportframe 31. Shafts 53 and 54 are journalled at each end in the side wallsof their sup-port frame 30.

Each of the rollers 43 to 48, inclusive, is provided with longitudinalcorrugations extending parallel to its axis of rotation. Thesecorrugations are designated 55. The corrugations or longitudinal teeth55 of the upper and lower rollers of each pair of rollers are in mesh.The side faces of the corrugations are designated 56. The angle 57included between the side faces 56 of each two successive rollcr teeth55 preferably should range between 60 to 90. To state it another way,the sides 56 of each groove made by each two succeeding teeth shouldhave an included angle falling within a range of from 60 to 90. Thepreferred included angel of the side faces of each groove is about 60.

The upper corrugated rollers 44, 46 and 48 are each mounted inintermeshing relation with their respective bottom corrugated roller 43,45 and 47 with a pressure that can be varied. Bottom rollers 43, 45 and47 drive upper rollers 44, 46 and 48, respectively.

Preferably, the intermeshing pressure of each pair of rollers iscontrolled by a pair of springs, one at each end of the shaft whichsupports each of the upper corrugated rollers. The mounting of each endof the shaft of each of the upper rollers is shown in FIGS. 3, 4 and 6.As shown, each of the side walls of frames 31, 32 and 30 are providedwith vertical slots 60. The bottom of each slot 60 is located a shortdistance on the order of onequarter A) of an inch above the top of thebearings which support the shafts 49, 51 and 53 for the lower corrugatedrollers. The ends of shafts 50, 52 and 54 are supported in bushings 61which fit snugly in slots 60. The upper end of each slot 60 in frames 31and 3-2 is closed by a cap 62. The upper end of slot 60 in frame 30 isclosed by a cap 59. Each cap 62 is provided with a threaded bore .63which receives an adjusting screw 64, the lower end of which bears upona coil spring 65 located in slot 60 between bushing 61 and the lower endof adjusting screw 64. Each bushing 61 is positioned above or has aclearance of the order of one-eighth A3) of an inch or more with thebottom of slot 60 when the upper corrugated rollers are resting upon,and in mesh with, the lowermost rollers.

Springs 65, the tension of which can be adjusted by screws 64, todetermine the intermeshing of clamping pressure of the upper and lowerrollers so that when the roving is fed through these corrugated rollersthe upper roller can move upwardly with respect to the lower roller toan extent depending upon the pressure of springs 65. Upper roller 48 isheld yieldably intermeshed with lower roller 47 by two J-clamps 58.Clamps 58 engage the ends of shaft 54 and extend downwardly through thebase of frame 30. A compression spring 9 is passed over the end of eachJ-clamp 58 and a nut 8 threaded n the end of each clamp 58 is turnedupwardldy so as to compress the spring against the bottom of frame 30and thereby cause clamps 58 to draw the upper roller 48 downwardlyagainst lower roller 47. The compression of springs 65 for one upperroller 44 preferably will be adjusted to a different degree than thecompression springs 65, 9 for rollers 46 and 48. Preferably, thepressure applied by springs 65 upon roller 44 will be less than thatapplied by springs 65 upon intermediate roller 46 and the pressureapplied by springs 65 upon roller 46 will be less than that applied bythe corresponding springs on roller 48.

A rotary brush 66 having pig bristles or synthetic bristles 67 is fixedon shaft 68 which is journalled at each end in caps 59. Rotary brush 66is positioned so that the bristles 67 have a zero clearance or justtouch not only the wires 23 of transfer roll 19 but also the apiees ofthe teeth of the upper roller 48. By this arrangement, rotary brush 66prevents wrapping of sliver fibers around the upper roll 48, and aids inthe delivery of the flattened and attenuated sliver to the teeth 23 oftransfer roll 19. More specifically, the centrifugal force generated bythe rotation of transfer roll 19 tends to cause the sliver to migrateoutwardly, away from the teeth 23. Brush 66 is designed to prevent suchmigration, and ensure that teeth 23 of transfer roll 19 catch and retainthe sliver fibers. Rotary brush 66 is adjustable by any suitable meansso as to maintain its bristles 67 contiguous at all times to the upperfeed roll 48 and to the wire teeth 23 of transfer roll 19. For example,caps 59 may be provided with slots and adjusting screws (see FIG. 13)whereby the caps, and hence rotary brush 66, may be adjusted relative toU-frame 30, whereby the contiguous relation aforesaid may be maintained.

The carding unit is driven from the ring gear 11. The drive for ringgear 11 is not shown but is conventional and usually consists of anelectric motor which is geared to the ring gear 11. The power fordriving the carding unit is taken from driving ring gear 11 by means ofa pinion or gear 69 which meshes with teeth 12 of ring gear 11. Gear 69is fixed at the lower end of a shaft 70 which is jo-urnalled in the base16 of frame 15. Bevel gear 71 is fixed to the upper end of shaft 70 andmeshes with a bevel gear 72 fixed on horizontal drive shaft 73journalled in frame 15.

Gear 74 and sprocket 75 are fixed on the end of shaft 120 which isjournalled in frame 15. Doffer roll 24 is driven by means of a sprocket76 fixed on shaft 25 and connected by a driving chain 77 with sprocket75. Small gear 74 is driven by a large gear 78 fixed on the end of shaft79 which is also journalled in frame 15. Also fixed upon shaft 79 is asprocket 80. Shaft 79 is driven from shaft 73 by means of bevel gear 110fixed on the end of shaft 79 which meshes with bevel gear 111 fixed onshaft 73. Sprocket 80 is connected by means of a chain 81 in drivingrelation with a sprocket 82 fixed on shaft 20. Shaft 20 supports thetransfer roll or main cylinder 19.

Shaft is journalled in frame 15. Gear 89 is fixed on one end of shaft 85and bevel gear 83 is fixed on the other end of shaft 85 and meshes withbevel gear 84 fixed on driving shaft 73. Thus, shaft 73 acts throughintermeshed gears 83 and 84 to drive shaft 85 and gear 89. A link 87 issupported at one end upon shaft 53. The lower end of this link isconnected to bracket 88 which is bolted to base 16 of frame 15, FIGS. 3and 5. Intermeshed gears 90 and 91 are mounted upon stub shafts 86 and92, respectively, which are supported upon link 87. Gear 93 is fixed onthe left hand end of shaft 53. Shaft 53 supports lower corrugated roller47. Gear 93 meshes with gear 94 which is fixed on shaft 68. Shaft 68supports roller brush 66.

Gears 90 and 91 are mounted on link 87 which is pivotally supported onshaft 53. Thus, the corrugated roller assembly as a whole may beadjusted toward and away from transfer roller 19 by adjusting plate 36relative to bracket 29 as above described, and the mounting of gears 90and 91 on pivoted link 87 will permit this adjustment and yet retaingear 91 always in mesh with gear 93 and gear 90 always in mesh with gear89. Whenever the feed roll assembly as a whole is adjusted toward oraway from transfer cylinder 19, rotary brush 66 is adjusted, by means ofthe slots and adjusting screws in caps 59 aforesaid, to maintain thebristles 67 of the brush contiguous with both the feed roll 48 and thewire teeth of the transfer roll 19. The lower end of link 87 isconnected to bracket 88 by bolt 121 which passes through an elongatedslot 122 in bracket 88 so that the bolt 121 can be adjusted upwardly anddownwardly in slot 122 as the roller assembly is adjusted toward or awayfrom the transfer roll 19. Bracket 88 is secured to the base 16 by abolt 123 which also passes through an elongated slot in bracket 88 topermit adjustment of bracket 88 along base 16.

In FIG. 3, the left hand end of shaft 53 is shown. Now, referring toFIG. 4, the right hand end of shaft 53 is shown. A gear 95 is fixed onthe right hand end of shaft 53. This gear 95 meshes with gear 96 fixedon stub shaft 97 which is journalled in bracket 125 which is bolted toframe 31. Stub shaft 97 also has gear 98 fixed thereon which meshes withgear 99 which is fixed on the right hand end of shaft 51 which carriesthe intermediate lower roller 45. Now, referring to FIG. 3, gear 100 isfixed on the left hand end of shaft 51. (Referring to FIG. 3, gear 100is offset from gear 93 and gears 100 and 93 therefore do not mesh butclear each other.) Gear 100 meshes with gear 101 rotatably mounted onstub shaft 102. Gear 103 fixed to gear 101 meshes with gear 104 which isfixed on the left hand end of shaft 40 upon which corrugated roller 43is supported.

The gears in the gear train which drive shaft 53 and roller 47 are asfollows: 69, 71, 72, 84, 83, 89, 90, 91, 93.

Gear 94, which rotates brush 66, meshes with gear 93.

The gear train which drives lower corrugated roller 45 includes all ofthe gears mentioned above for driving shaft 53 and roller 47 and, inaddition, includes gears 95, 96, 98 and 99.

The gears of the gear train which drive corrugated roller 43 include allof the gears mentioned above in the driving gear train for corrugatedroller 45 and, in addition, include gears 100, 101, 103 and 104 which isfixed on shaft 49.

By referring to the reduction gear trains which drive the three pairs ofcorrugated rollers, it should be noted that rollers 47 and 48 rotate ata faster speed than rollers 45 and 46 and that rollers 45 and 46 rotateat a faster speed than rollers 43 and 44. By way of example, gears 47and 48 make two and one-half revolutions to each revolution of gears 45and 46 and gears 45 and 46 make three revolutions to each revolution ofgears 43 and 44. Ther.p.m. ratio of rollers 42 to rollers 41 to two andone-half to one and the r.p.m. ratio of rollers 41 to rollers 40 isthree to one. The purpose of these differences in r.p.m. of the threepairs of rollers is explained below.

A feed trough or channel 105 for the roving or sliver is secured byscrews to frame 32. There is provided adjacent the outlet end of trough105 a cross rod 106 upon which are adjustably mounted two posts 107. Theposts 107 are adjusted lengthwise of rod 106 and held in position by setscrews. The posts 107 in conjunction with rod 106 and the base of trough105 form an outlet 108 through which the roving is fed into the firstset of corrugated rollers 43 and 44. The width of the outlet 108 willdepend upon the distance between posts 107 and will vary with the sizeof the roving being fed into the carding head.

The roving or sliver is designated 109 (FIG. 7) and may consist of anyfibers or mixture of fibers, either natural or synthetic, coarse or fineor mixtures thereof, which are suitable for forming the pile of a knitpile fabric. By way of example, it is common practice to form the pilein knit pile fabrics of such well known fibers as wool, dynel, Orlon,Acrylan, nylon, Verel, and mixtures thereof, said pile fibers havingknown deniers. It is common practice in pile fabric to make the pile offibers having deniers ranging from two to fifty, but reference is madeto the denier of the pile fibers only by way of example because mycarding head will operate efficiently regardless of the denier of thepile fiber.

The operation of the carding unit it as follows: The driving ring gear11 drives the dotler roll 24, main transfer cylinder 19, brush 66 andcorrugated roilers in the manner outlined above. The leading end of theroving or sliver 109 which is guided in trough 105, is passed throughthe outlet 108 and fed into the first set of rolls 43 and 44 whichrotate in the direction of the arrows. As the roving passes or is drawnbetween the intcrmeshed teeth or corrugations 55 of the first pair ofrollers, it is compressed and flattened out. The roving travels or isdrawn from left to right, FIG. 7. The flattened end of the roving thenpasses into the second set of rollers and 46 where the intermeshedcorrugations apply pressure upon the roving. Since the second pair ofrollers 45, 46 are rotating at a higher r.p.m. than the first set ofrollers, the roving is attenuated, thinned or drawn out. The rovingpasses from the second set of rollers to the third set of rollers 47 and48 which also hold or grip the roving in compression and the roving isfurther attenuated because rollers 47 and 48 are traveling at a higherr.p.m. than the second set of rollcrs 45, 46. The roving which has nowbeen further attenualed and the fibers spread out into a flat sheet orlayer of uniform thickness, is directed toward and substantiallyuniformly deposited across the wires of main cylinder 19 which carriesthe fibers clockwise, FIG. 1, to the dofl'er roll 24. Cylinder 19actually serves principally as a transfer roll for the fibers. Thedoffer roll 24 picks the fibers from the Wires of the transfer cylinder19 and carries them around to the needles 14 in the rotating needlecylinder 13 and the needles pick the fibers from the dotfer roll in thewell known manner. Since brush 66 has a zero clearance both with roll 48and with the circumference or tips of the wires 23 of the transfer roll19, the brush picks off any stray fibers from roller 48 and also aids inuniformly distributing the fibers over the transfer roll 19. With theaid of brush 67, the drafting action of the three sets of rollers 40, 41and 42 delivers a continuous, uniform layer of fibers on transfer roll19. Rolls 19 and 24 serve primarily to transfer the attenuated andparallelizcd fibers from rolls 47, 48 to the needles 14.

The clearance between roller 48 and the transfer roller 19 varies withthe fiber length. This clearance can range from one-quarter of an inchto one-two hundredths of an inch.

Shaft is vertically aligned with shaft 49 and similarly shafts 52 and 54are vertically aligned with shafts 51 and 53. The distance between thecenters of shafts 49 and 51 and shafts 51 and 53 is always greater thanthe length of the fibers which make up the roving 109 which is beingdrafted. carded and fed in my carding unit. Hence, the desirability forhaving the pairs of corrugated rollers 40, 41 and 42; adjustably mountedupon plate 36. Unless the distance between the centers of roller shafts49 and 51 and between shafts 51 and 53 is greater than the length of thefibers, then the fibers will be stretched because rollers 45 and 46rotate at a greater speed than rollers 43 and 44 and rollers 47 and 48rotate at a greater speed than rollers 45 and 46. Stretching of thefibers is undesirable because it causes them to lose life. Thus, in theroller assembly, the distance between the line along which one set ofcorrugated rollers clamps or compresses the roving to the point or linewhere the next set of rollers press or clamp the roving is alwaysgreater than the length of the fibers which constitute the roving.Hence, in passing through the roller assembly, the individual fibers arenever stretched but the roving is attenuated or lengthened so that thefibers move relative to each other lcnghwise of the rov ing and line upparallel to the length of the roving and to become uniformly distributedacross the width of the roving, see FIG. 9 which illustrates theattenuated roving as it passes out of corrugated rollers 42 preparatoryto being taken up by the transfer roll 19. Rollers 40, 41 and 42 crimpthe fibers. This crimp is temporary and aids or allows the transfer anddofler rollers to properly handle the fibers. The crimp helps the maintransfer cylinder and doffer roll to better grip and hold the fibers sothat they will not fly off these rollers during operation due tocentrifugal force. The crimp also aids the needles in raking the fibersout of the dolfer roll which gives more uniform distribution of thefibers on the needles and in the fabric.

The corrugations or flutes can be rounded off so as not to crimp inthose instances where the roving constitutes pre-crimped fibers. Mycarding unit will handle smaller denier fibers than conventional cardingheads. Conventional carding heads use wire carding cloth. This cardingcloth wears out rapidly in the use of a carding head. Since my cardingunit uses corrugated rollers instead of wire carding cloth, the expenseincident to the wearing out of carding cloth in the conventional cardinghead is avoided in the use of my carding unit. Further, my carding unitwill handle a roving made of a mixture or blend of coarse and finedenier fibers Without separating the coarse and fine denier fibers. Aconventional carding head will separate the coarse from the fine denierfibers to a substantial extent and therefore will fail to maintain thecoarse and fine denier blend desired.

My carding unit will handle heavier roving or sliver than conventionalcarding heads because the roller assembly takes the roving or sliver andspreads it out into a wide uniform layer before it is picked up by thecard cloth of the transfer roil 19. This is a highly importantadvantage, for in all prior carding heads for pile fabric knittingmachines it is necessary to extensively pre-card the sliver into arelatively fine roving preparatory to knitting. With this invention,pre-carding of the sliver is substantially reduced, since the pluralpairs of feed rolls permit handling of substantially heavier sliver thanheretofore was possible.

Likewise, since the fibers are applied to only two rolls having an outersurface of card cloth, my carding unit is admirably suited for handlingmuch longer fibers than can be efficiently fed on a conventional cardhead.

This carding unit is efficient in operation and accomplishes in apractical manner the uniform distribution and feeding of the fibers ontotransfer roll .19 and the dofler roll 24. Uniform feeding of the fibersacross the wire face of the doffer roll 24 is important so that eachneedle 14 will pick or rake from the doifer roll a uniform amount orbundle of fibers which become the pile of the knit pile fabric. Unlessthe needles rake substantially uniform amounts or bundles of fibers fromthe doffer roll, the pile of the knit pile fabric will not be uniformand smooth. Uniform distribution of the pile throughout the fabric isimportant from the standpoint of the desired appearance of the pilefabric.

I claim:

1. A carding head for a knitting machine having a set of needles, saidcarding head being operative to convert sliver in rope form and composedof discrete fibers into an attenuated, flattened and widened sheetsuitable for reception by the needles to knit a pile fabric comprising,in combination with a transfer roll and dolfer:

(a) a plurality of successive pairs of spaced feed rolls, driven atprogressively increasing rates of speed, for feeding sliver to thetransfer roll,

(b) a support for the feed rolls, including means to adjust the feedrolls as a unit toward and away from the transfer roll,

(cl adjusting means on the support for selectively adjusting the spacedpairs of feed rolls relatively toward or away from each other,

H] a rotary brush mounted on the support and disposed in touchingrelationship to both the last successive pair of feed rolls and thetransfer roll and (e) adjustment means on the support to position thebrush in touching relationship to the last successive pair of feed rollsand the transfer roll regardless of the position of the support relativeto the transfer roll.

2. The carding head of claim 1 further including adjustable guide meansin advance of the feed rolls through which the sliver passes from asource of supply to the first pair of feed rolls.

3. A carding head for a knitting machine having a set of needles, saidcarding head being operative to convert sliver in rope form and composedof discrete fibers into an attenuated, flattened and widened sheetsuitable for reception by the needles to knit a pile fabric comprising,in combination with a transfer roll and doffer:

(a) a plurality of successive pairs of peripherally fluted feed rollsdriven at progressively increasing rates of speed for feeding sliver tothe transfer roll,

(b) each successive pair of rolls being spaced from the preceding pairof rolls a distance greater than the length of the major portion of thefibers,

(c) the fluted periphery of each roll being composed of generallyV-shaped crests and valleys in alternatron,

(d) the converging side faces of the generally V-shaped valleys formingan angle in the range from to (e) resilient means yieldably urging eachpair of rolls into flute meshing engagement at selected pressures,

(f) a rotary brush disposed in touching relationship to both the lastsuccessive pair of feed rolls and to the transfer roll and (g)adjustment means operative to position the brush at all times intouching relationship to the last suc cessive pair of feed rolls and thetransfer roll.

4. A carding head for a knitting machine having a set of needles, saidcarding head being operative to convert .vllvcr in rope form andcomposed of discrete fibers into an attenuated, flattened and widenedsheet suitable for reception by the needles to knit a pile fabriccomprising, in combination with a transfer roll and doficr:

(a) a plurality of successive pairs of spaced feed rolls, driven atprogressively increasing rates of speed, for feeding sliver to thetransfer roll,

(/1) a support for the feed rolls, including means to adjust the feedrolls as a unit toward and away from the transfer roll,

(0) adjusting means on the support for selectively adjusting the spacedpairs of feed rolls relatively toward or away from each other,

(d) a rotary brush mounted on the support and disposed in touchingrelationship to the transfer roll and (c) adjustment means on thesupport to position the brush in touching relationship at all times tothe transfer roll regardless of the position of the support relative tothe transfer roll.

5. A carding head for a knitting mbchine having a set of needles, saidcarding head being operative to convcr! sliver in rope form and composedof discrete fibers into an attenuated, flattened and widened sheetsuitable for reception by the needles to knit a pile fabric comprising,in combination with a transfer roll and doflcr:

(a) a plurality of successive pairs of peripherally fluted feed rollsdriven at progressively increasing rates of speed for feeding sliver tothe transfer roll,

(b) each successive pair of rolls being spaced from the preceding pairof rolls a distance greater than the length of the major portion of thefibers,

(c) the fluted periphery of each roll being composed of generallyV-rhaped crests and valleys in alternation,

(d) the converging side faces of the generally V-shaped valleys formingan angle in the range from 60 to 90,

(a) resilient means yichlably urging each pair of rolls into flutemeshing engagement at selected pressures,

roll.

References Cited by the Examiner The following references cited by theExaminer, are of record in the patented file of this patent or theoriginal patent.

UNITED STATES PATENTS Proctor 19-99 Klein 19-105 Bates 19-160 Rand19-282 X Shackleton 57-36 Collins 19-105 10 2/1929 Butler 19-292 X12/1946 Robinson 19-282 6/1955 Brandt 66-9 12/1955 Werth et a1. 19-2603/1956 Whitehurst 19-282 9/1960 Lynch 19-157 11/1961 Hill 66-9 2/1962Howes 66-9 2/1962 Hill 66-9 7/1963 Moore 66-9 X FOREIGN PATENTS 1882Great Britain. 1883 Great Britain. 7/1927 Great Britain.

ROBERT R. MACKEY, Primary Examiner.

